


Saru X Reader - Carving

by writeyouin



Category: Star Trek: Discovery
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Halloween, M/M, Pranks, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-30
Updated: 2018-10-30
Packaged: 2019-08-11 00:40:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16465400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/writeyouin/pseuds/writeyouin
Summary: When the reader is teaching Saru about Halloween, he has trouble carving pumpkins and acknowledging hidden emotions.





	Saru X Reader - Carving

“Pumpkin,” You commanded the food replicator in the near empty canteen where Saru was trying to take a quiet break and read his datapad. He almost glanced up at the unusual food order but ignored it in favour of the old Earth literature he was reading. “Pumpkin. Pumpkin! PUMPKIN!”

Saru looked up, mildly concerned with the maniacal laughter that followed as you started piling pumpkins on a nearby table. He had no idea what you were doing, but he did feel that it was something that had to be stopped. You seemed to sense his gaze on you and you turned around to stare at him with challenging eyes, practically daring him to stop you from whatever insane plan you were concocting. Saru felt his threat ganglia tingle, though fortunately they didn’t come out. He stood up, straightening his jacket as he did so.

“Lieutenant (L/N), please explain your actions with the food replicator,” He tried to assert himself through his tone, though right now while you grinned mischievously at him, he didn’t feel much like your commanding officer.

“What? This is completely innocent, I swear. Besides, nobody questions it when you get like a bajillion blueberries.”

Saru stammered momentarily before regaining his composure; he was not used to being spoken to in such a casual manner by anyone, let alone his subordinates. It occurred to him that some human prank may be at play and as such, he made sure he wasn’t as stern as he should have been, although the light tone could have also been because he desired your specific companionship. “Please remember that I am the first officer aboard this ship and blueberries are entirely different to your pumpkins. I highly doubt these are for eating.”

You stepped up close to him and Saru resisted his instinctual urge to step back. In all seriousness you spoke, pointing at the fruits in question, “Are you doubting that I can eat these? Because I’ll do it, right here, right now man, I will eat these friggin’ pumpkins.”

Saru had to question why human competitiveness was considered one of their redeeming qualities as he backpedalled, “Now, now, I assure you I believe that you could- uh would- um- please don’t eat all of them.”

You grinned widely at the panic on Saru’s face and he had to remind himself that it was a gesture of friendship, even though it reminded him of a predator’s maw right now. “Chill Saru, I’m just screwing with you. Check your calendar man, it’s Halloween!”

Saru frowned curiously and you felt you had to repeat the call.

“ **Halloween!**   **HALLOWEEN!**  Hallo- Come on Saru, you studied on Earth for like what, four years? You’ve got to know what Halloween is.”

Saru shook his head slowly, then it came to him, “Ah yes, would this be that odd human custom where a fat man in red supposedly breaks into one’s home and-”

You grabbed Saru’s shirt, pulling him down towards you, then spoke through gritted teeth, “You shut your dirty mouth.” This time, he couldn’t help his threat ganglia which slipped out, much to your amusement. You let him go, shaking your head, “Really Saru? You think I’d attack you?”

Saru had yet to grasp the complexities of human jokes and it seemed you would not go easy on him today, “Well I-”

“’Cos I would, but not here, come on.”

You grabbed a large pumpkin, shoving it into his chest, “What are you-”

“What? I can’t carry all of these by myself, let’s go.”

You gathered a few of the pumpkins, waiting for him to grab the rest, though he was obviously confused as to why he was doing as you ordered; quite obviously, from the moment he’d spoken to you, he’d lost control of the situation.

It didn’t take long for Saru to realise you were taking him to your hab-suite, where you dumped the pumpkins on your roommates’ bed. He didn’t know who you were bunked with, but he imagined they’d be angry should they find the mess you made.

“Ah, don’t worry about it, the roomie’s on shift tonight,” You waved away his concern.

“Lieutenant (L/N)-”

“It’s (Y/N).”

“Lieutenant (L/N), what is the purpose of this holiday? This Halloween of yours?”

“Alright,” You smiled, taking pity on him while simultaneously grabbing a laser knife. Saru felt vaguely threatened again, until you sat on your bed and grabbed a pumpkin and took off the top, scooping the innards out into a bowl. “So, Halloween was originally a pagan festival of sorts when the veil between the living and dead was supposed to be thinnest, but now it’s more about keeping traditions alive in the better, less depressing, adapted version which is about having fun celebrating the strange and unusual, eating a load of junk food, and all around having a blast. One tradition is pumpkin carving, where you carve anything spoopy into it, then put a candle inside.”

Although Saru had multiple questions, he settled on one thing in particular, “I believe you mean ‘spooky’.”

You stared at him gravely, “I said what I said.”

Saru feared he may have offended you and was about to apologise when you grinned, indicating it was yet another joke. He sighed, would the mystery never end?

You patted the bed next to you, indicating for him to join, “Come on, give it a shot, it’ll be fun.”

Reluctantly, Saru grabbed a pumpkin, placing it on the desk and sitting there instead. Over the course of a few hours, during which you explained more on the subject of Halloween and carved several pumpkins flawlessly, Saru became increasingly frustrated by his multiple failed attempts. After years of practice, you were creating marvellous depictions of films, and even some crew members, yet all Saru had managed to do was get covered in goo, set one pumpkin on fire with the laser knife, turn another to mush, and almost burn himself on his latest attempt; did humans really enjoy this?

You giggled at his frustration, for he was usually so composed in all he did. Placing your latest masterpiece on the floor, you approached him from behind, offering advice, “You’re not putting enough pressure on it.”

Saru rolled his eyes, “Please, with the last one I supposedly applied too much pressure. How is this not better?”

You shook your head with a grin and placed your hands over his, guiding them, “Okay, so if we start with a basic face, we kind of want to…”

Your words faded into the background as Saru felt your warm hands over his. Unable to stretch over him because of his height, you moved slightly to the side so your head was level with his. Saru hadn’t noticed until that point  you were wearing some kind of light perfume which he found dizzying, yet not in an unpleasant way. He tried to keep on task, but for the first time in his life, Saru felt unanchored, as a dawning realisation hit him. He’d never found humans attractive before, being from a completely different species, but perhaps he had over-isolated himself from friends and in doing so, created a desperate yearning for something more. Clinging onto his last bit of professionalism, Saru said nothing. There was no way he could possibly reveal anything of his immature crush, if anything it was exhaustion from carving the tough pumpkin. The was only one problem with his conclusion; he was not in the slightest bit tired, but he was scared… of himself. Halloween truly was a night for the strange and unusual, and Saru found that he did not like it one bit.


End file.
